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JOYCE DELUCA : 1942 ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT DIARY HANDWRITTEN BY A VIVACIOUS YOUNG WOMAN WHO WORKS AT THE NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR AERONAUTICS IN THE HEADY CRITICAL DAYS OF FIGHTING THE NAZIS AND JAPANESE IN WWII

12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. On offer is a very fascinating, significant diary/notebook of a young woman, Joyce Deluca, who worked at National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the forerunner to today's NASA. The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a U.S. federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved, and its assets and personnel transferred to the newly created National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Among other advancements, NACA research and development produced the NACA duct, a type of air intake used in modern automotive applications, the NACA cowling, and several series of NACA airfoils which are still used in aircraft manufacturing. During World War II, NACA was described as "The Force Behind Our Air Supremacy" due to its key role in producing working superchargers for high altitude bombers, and for producing the cutting-edge wing profiles for the North American P-51 Mustang. NACA was also key in developing the area rule that is used on all modern supersonic aircraft, and conducted the key compressibility research that enabled the Bell X-1 to break the sound barrier. Our diarist, Joyce DeLuca worked directly with several key personnel at NACA to include(at one time), General George Marshall, the only general in the history of the United States to win a Nobel Peace Prize. Joyce was a favorite among the draftsmen in the engineering department, however, their boss, Mr. Lorentz told her to 'keep away from this department'. "Mr. Lorentz comes out to meet me in the hall when I bring anything up there and that is to keep me from going in to see the draftsmen. Mr. Sturgis made up a card & came down to my office with it & asked me to put it on my door. It read 'Office Of Amorilization.' Frances & I joked about it & we laugh to the boys about it. I met Mr. Kohan & Mr. Keifer out to lunch & they were joking with me. I said I couldn't come up to see them and they said they were on a "Sympathy Strike" until I went up & spoke to them. Since that time I have paid more attention to Mr. Lorentz & the old man likes it. I knew he would. He wants to be recognized as the only one 'up there' worth talking to. He is a nice person, rather gruff & sticks to his work pretty closely, but he is alright." Whatever those designers and draftsmen were working on 'up there' in the engineering department was not to be seen by Joyce DeLuca or others without definite clearance permission. The diary is undated but can be situated in 1942 as there are several day and date references that place it in that year. [Tuesday, Mar 10, Monday Mar 23]. About half the pages are blank. Many entries are made in the first half of the year and take the form of notes that span several pages. It is a chatty, breezy recounting of the interactions of a small group of people working in this government agency. There are 2 photocopies of pictures, one showing her entire family. She opens with descriptions of some co-workers: "Mrs Kuhns is a rather elderly lady who has grey hair and rather expressionless blue eyes. .... She is alternately kind and very sarcastic She does very nice things ... yet the next minute she can do something very nasty. .... Miss Bertha Kuhns lives at the All Suites Hotel for Women and comes into very little contact with men and dislikes them more or less", "Miss Kuhn and Mrs. Lamburn have been carrying on a feud for years. ... She and Ms. Kuhns are always keeping tabs on each other and checking up on each others faults and always have derogatory remarks for each other" [ Jan 5], " ....My patience is wearing thin but I'll try to be nice up to the very end and then I'm clearing out". [Mar 11]. Observing about the boys in the drafting department, she noted: "... I have paid more attention to Mr Larents and the old bird likes it" [Jan 29] There are no references to outside events, even though this is written just after Pearl Harbor. What emerges is a picture of a rather charming young woman working at the very outset of America's entry into WW2. Joyce writes mostly about her work at NACA, the importance of what she is working on, her co-workers, her boss Mr. J. Vanier, and she wanes philosophical about their personalities, how work and morale could be improved, "will there ever be such a thing as a happy and satisfied government employee," etc. She works long hours and has a very personal and relaxed relationship with Mr. Vanier, who she finds to be an absolutely kind man with a terrific sense of humor. He is always calling her into his office for one thing or another. They do translating and look through the dictionary at work together. She helps him with his Italian translation as Joyce comes from a huge Italian family in the Boston area of Massachusetts; her parents being directly from Italy. At one point, on Feb. 27, when she went into Mr. Vanier's office he told her to "stick around, we are going to open a new glue pot." He was doing anacrostics of some kind. Joyce Writes "The job on hand is difficult but I am not afraid to work. Mr. Vanier has an Italian translation today & when I asked him how he was doing he said something funny to me. He is sitting there today with his big cigar and smoking away." DeLuca holds Mr. Vanier in high esteem and on one page of her diary there is a drop of melted red wax with what appears to be a piece of hair and he has signed "J. Vanier." She often mentions Room 912, and Mr. Vanier refers to one of the offices as "the crying room" and room 911 as the room for proofreading. On March 12, DeLuca is so fed up with 2 bickering women who are actually in charge of all the girls, that she puts in for a transfer to "The Federal Housing Department" and she is turned down. "March 15, Today I went into Mr. Vanier's room for clandestine coffee (coffee, sugar, etc. were rationed) & he gave me one of his many heart-to-heart talks & brought home the fact to me, all too vividly, that this War will take everyone that means any thing to me. Anthony, Sonny, Rusty (her brothers). There was cold in my heart when I thought of it. He gave me a few pointers on how to get Sonny & Anthony commissions in the Army. I realized my words would mean nothing to them, because like all Americans they are all confident." "March 16, MacArthur put in charge in Australia. March 17, This morning I went into Mr. Vanier's office, as is the custom, we discussed the draft bill that was passed for the women, and he quipped me into shape with this. "You women never stop to think" & he pointed out the various pitfalls & etc. of the situation. Later that night I went with the girls at the Neptune room celebrating Louise's birthday. April 2, They are rushing me again. I was rushed today with a British Report. April 4, I pretend to be a happy little government worker, if there is such a thing & just plug away at my typewriter & just take as little time for relaxation periods because this work is very strenuous & rather difficult to the mind. April 27, Well I don't know if it is a compliment or not but I'm being chosen to do all the Tables for a T.N. despite the fact that Miss K. gets approximately $27,000 a year & I only get $1670. I suppose it is the privilege of the higher ups to see that the lower ones get all the work. The injustice of labor ratings & work scheduling is appalling, but I suppose in time that will also be governed by a government who has nothing else to re-organize. April 28, Tonight the President submitted his 7-point plan for this war, and it was met with rather a grim nervousness that brought home the fact that we are at war. I can't believe how my world is changed." "May 2, Mr. Vanier is encouraging me to take a refresher course to meet the demand for help in answer to the increasing demand for stenographers. Every job offered now is considered a "war time appointment" & is given only for the duration of six months. No more probational appointments & no absolute appointments are given out. Today I was on the air! Through Mrs. Colwell. I was interviewed for a Federal Journal. May 15, Received a Kimball Report and was told to leave my T.N. and to get on the Kimball Report immediately. April 2, I was rushed again today with a British Report. on July 16, 1941, Joyce writes "While quite peeved one day I wrote this help-wanted ad up and gave it to the girls to read. This is what they expect of us on the job. The work we are doing now. This is the ad I made up - Marvelous Opportunity For - An English Professor with thorough knowledge of Aerodynamics, Aeronautical Engineering and all branches of Aeronautical study that can read and write approximately 8 languages and who is a speedy and accurate stencil cutter, for position with the NACA at the grand salary of $1440.00 to start." This is how she and the other girls/women that worked in this department felt was expected of them. Those she worked with included Frances A. McCarthy, Louise V. Lawhorn, Lucille Bunn, (lunch at the Cafe Rector on Conn Ave.), Miss Kuhnn, Helen Birchard, Mr. Helms, Miss Kess (has been a NACA employee since 1915), Mr. Helms, Miss Muller, Harry Prebish, Frank Curley, Miss LaRue, Miss Johnston, Lucy, Ellen, Jeanne Cleary, etc. Please note that even though the cover says "Five Year Diary" Joyce only used this to write in from January through July of 1942.. Illustr.: /. Manuscript. Book Condition: Good +

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